Well, we’ve heard it a million times, a win is good as any other win, it doesn’t matter how it happens. And as true as that statement is, the end of Monday Nights Eagles game had Birds fans biting their nails a little bit more than they would have liked.

Jackson celebrates his first-quarter TD (via Philly.com)

They game started out phenomenal for the Eagles, running play after play at an incredible pace all the way down into the Redzone. But it was then that the first mistake of the game was committed. The first possession of the season ending in a controversial turnover, a sideways Michael Vick pass that was swatted and recovered for a 90-yard TD by DeAngelo Hall (it’s controversial because the play was reviewed and the evidence was not conclusive).

However, it was as if the new Chip Kelly offense needed to get that off their chest as they would go on to score 33 unanswered points, immediately proving that the improved Eagles offense was clearly a force to be reckoned with. Even the Eagles defense was looking strong, forcing 2 interceptions and a fumble.

But it was then that the decline started, and the heart rates of Eagles fans everywhere became increasingly faster. Robert Griffin III and the Redskins reclaimed the momentum, leading a 56-yard touchdown drive to end the 3rd quarter.

The closing period started in the favor of Washington as well, beginning with an Eagles 3 and out forcing them to hand the ball right back over to the Redskins offense. Once again, the Redskins marched right down the field and capped off another impressive touchdown drive.

It was then then that the Eagles finally stepped up and reclaimed the game, dragging out a time consuming drive that would end up sealing the deal (although the Redskins did end up scoring another touchdown with approximately a minute remaining, fortunately this touchdown turned out to be be pretty meaningless since the Redskins were unsuccessful in their onside kick attempt).

Overall, it was still a good opening week 1 for Chip Kelly’s squad. While the second half was a bumpy road to victory in which the Eagles were outscored 20-7, the first half for the Eagles was a spectacular one that played as the X-Factor in this 33-27 win over the Redskins.

The defense looked solid (forcing 3 turnovers) and the offense looked amazing, giving all Eagles fans a sense of optimism moving forward. Next up for the Birds it’s the home opener next Sunday at 1:00 against the San Diego Chargers. Although San Diego certainly isn’t a great team, the Eagles must take them with the top level of seriousness, especially if the second half of this Redskins game was any indication of what can happen when this team starts to let up.